


The Boy in the Forest

by cheshireree (shyfoxes)



Series: SouRin Week 2016 (Feb 2 -9) [2]
Category: Free!
Genre: Childhood Friends, Gen, Haru is a Bird Here, Haru is a little shit, Pre-Relationship, Witches
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-05
Updated: 2016-02-05
Packaged: 2018-05-18 07:28:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5905825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shyfoxes/pseuds/cheshireree
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>SouRin Week - Day Two - Aiko Desho: When We Were Kids...</p><p>Witches AU. Rin makes friends with a witch’s son named Sousuke.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Boy in the Forest

Rin’s mother had warned him about the forest and not to go deep in there. Only play at the outskirts but never journey in, she had said. There were things, people that shouldn’t be meddled with. But really, she’d also told him all sorts of magical stories, so how could he resist?

He may have been a crybaby but above all else, Rin was adventurous. So while Gou had gone to a friend’s house for the day, Rin had taken off to explore the forest as any He’d be back before his mother would really miss him, he just wanted a peek. She’d think he was just out running along the beach waiting for Gou to come home. No harm in that.

Rin had stood outside of it from the roadside for a little while looking in. It was relatively quiet, with just the faint chirping of birds. Nothing looked out of the ordinary, as far as Rin could tell. One black bird seemed to stare at him with bright blue eyes as Rin stared back. It tilted its head towards the forest. Rin raised a hand as if to wave before the bird was flying off.

“Hey, wait!” Rin called and chased after it.

The bird glided between the branches, landing a few times as Rin chased behind it. When they came close to a clearing, the bird landed on the branch of a fallen log and gave Rin a side-long glance. It looked towards the clearing and squawked. Rin crept close, surprised when it didn’t even budge. He held his hand up and bird did little more than ruffle its feathers and look more insistently towards the clearing.

Rin peeked in.

Sitting with his head between his knees was a little boy no older than Rin. He was about eight, Rin figured. His shoulders shook a little and Rin fretted that maybe he was crying. Rin glanced at the bird and it tilted its head towards the boy again. Rin crept close, bending down on his knees as he reached out to the other boy.

“H-Hey,” Rin called. “Are you okay? Are you lost?”

The boy’s head snapped up, eyes red and cheeks ruddy, but otherwise his face was dry of tears. He blinked at Rin, almost like he couldn’t believe Rin was real. Rin stared back unsure of what else he should say.

“What are you doing here?” The boy said hurriedly. “How did you even get in?”

Rin tilted his head. “What do you mean ‘get in’?” Rin said.

The boy jumped to his feet, pointing out at the forest as he fixed Rin with a hard gaze. Rin startled; the boy was barely that much taller than him, and wearing a weird robe over his t-shirt and shorts. Around his neck was a strange symbol on a chain.

“Humans shouldn’t be able to come in here. There’s a block at the threshold,” The boy said.

Rin furrowed his brows. “What threshold? There was nothing but dirt and trees.”

The boy shook his head. He crowded up against Rin, eyeing him critically. He tugged at the long fringes of Rin’s hair and the collar of his shirt. He frowned deeper when he found nothing out of the ordinary.

“You’re just a regular human right?” The boy mumbled.

“Of course I am! Just like you. Why are you out in the forest like this? Where’s your mommy?” Rin said.

The boy looked away sheepishly, the tips of his ears red. He scratched the back of his neck.

“So, you are lost?” Rin said.

“No!” The boy cried, indignant. “I just – I just took a wrong turn is all! I can get home just fine. Haru ditched me after I yelled at him.”

“Haru?” Rin said.

The bird behind him squawked gliding in to land on Sousuke shoulder. Sousuke looked at the bird peevishly, motioning to shrug it off but it held onto his robe insistently with its claws. It’s blue eyes almost seemed to stare at him in amusement.

“This,” The boy said with barely concealed indignation. “Is Haru. My mom gave him to me. He’s my familiar.”

“Familiar,” Rin repeated. He didn’t know what that meant. “Then what’s your name? I’m Rin.”

“Rin,” The boy repeated, forming his name slow and soft. “I’m Sousuke. I live in this forest.”

“And you got lost?” Rin replied too quickly.  

“Haru left me here!” Sousuke tried to defend. “He was supposed to lead me home. Instead he kept trying to bathe in the stream and wouldn’t leave it. Then he flew off and brought you here.”

Rin hummed, rocking on his feet. He looked around the clearing; it was quiet and calm. It was a good place to play if he was being serious. It was well lit, lots of places for a little boy to climb and to race around in. He looked back at Sousuke and smiled.

“Are you the only kid here?” Rin asked. Sousuke nodded. “Then, let’s be friends! Let’s walk to your home together.”

Sousuke hesitated and regarded Haru. He ruffled his feathers, apparently a yes as Sousuke nodded to him. Haru flapped his wings and took off to a nearby branch.

Rin took Sousuke by his hand without thinking, not unlike how he’d do with Gou and looked between Haru and Sousuke. Sousuke didn’t wriggle his hand free but he seemed startled.

“This way neither of us will stray, right?” Rin said. “Show me your home!”

Haru cried out once and then flew off. Rin took off running, Sousuke stumbling after. They laughed, hands binding tighter and straight for the cottage Sousuke called home.

It wasn’t until Rin was leaving later, Haru perched on his shoulder and a “charm” around his neck that Sousuke’s mother leaned forward to whisper a secret to him. She and Sousuke were witches. She smiled secretly and told him to come back whenever. She glanced at Sousuke and ruffled Rin’s hair.

-

Rin stood outside the forest for a bit, having learned its multiple paths by heart now. Haru looked at him from his usual perch at the entrance to the forest, head titled. Rin didn’t hesitate as he walked into the forest, a hop in his step as he spotted tiny red ribbons tied along young saplings the more he went in. Sousuke had said that he’d put them up for Rin, so he’d never get lost. But really, Rin knew better. Even for as long as Sousuke had lived in this forest, he still couldn’t even navigate it to save his life. Rin supposed that it was why Sousuke’s mother had gifted him Haru in the first place. Someone needed to keep vigil over him. For a witch’s son, Sousuke was dreadfully bad with navigation.

Haru swooped down the further in Rin got, tilting his head a little when she thought Rin may be headed the wrong way. A few minutes later and Rin reached a little old cottage at the heart of the forest. Rin could see the tops of an old shrine peeking out from behind. Rin crept up the front porch stairs and put his hands on his hips as he looked down at his friend.

Sousuke lay in the swinging seat his mother had apparently installed a few days ago after she’d seen it in a catalogue in a konbini in town. She’d bought the thing then with a wave of her wand it had sprung up. Rin’s eyes still boggled whenever he saw her in action. Sousuke was dozing, head pillowed on the side of his old dog who only peeked his eye up at Rin before drifting back off.

Rin nudged Sousuke with his foot. When all Sousuke did was frown in his sleep and turn over, Rin huffed and climbed into the seat and laid dramatically across Sousuke.

“Sousuke,” Rin whined. “Sooousuke.”

Sousuke grunted, trying to nudge Rin off. Rin pressed his nose into Sousuke neck and kept nudging him, wriggling around until Sousuke’s old dog got fed up and jumped off to sleep in a patch of sun at the other side of the porch. The seat wobbled, going a little faster but Sousuke refused to budge. He was probably the laziest eight year old Rin had ever met.  Sousuke shifted trying to escape Rin until Rin had simply squirmed his way between Sousuke and the back of the seat. He pressed his nose against Sousuke’s.

“Sousuke Yamazaki,” Rin said peevishly. “I come all this way to see you and you don’t even get up to greet me!”

“Because you never let me sleep,” Sousuke grumbled. He yawned, “Five more minutes.”

Rin shoved at his shoulders, trying to rouse Sousuke. If he annoyed him enough sometimes Sousuke would simply relent to Rin’s wishes. He complained a lot but really did enjoy Rin’s ideas, sometimes he just needed prompting. For a kid that was learning magic and living out in a forest, Sousuke wasn’t very adventurous. Rin shoved again.

Sousuke’s arms shot out and pulled Rin flush against him. He tucked Rin’s head under his chin, trying his arms between their chests. Sousuke closed his legs around Rin’s so he couldn’t move. Rin blushed, heart hammering in his chest. Sousuke’s hand stroked the back of his hair gently. He shifted a little so that Rin could lay down a little better and Sousuke’s arm wasn’t completely falling asleep.

“Five more minutes,” Sousuke repeated. “Then we’ll do whatever you want.”

Rin huffed, closing his eyes in defeat. Sousuke felt so warm in the encroaching fall chill. He could feel Sousuke’s pulse against the back of his knuckles. He managed to release his arms from where they were trapped so he could lazily drape them over Sousuke’s shoulders.

“Just five minutes,” Rin reminded. “I mean it.”

“I promise, I promise,” Sousuke said, yawning. Rin snuggled his face into Sousuke’s chest, content with his answer. Sousuke was good with promises, anyway. He had nothing to worry about.

**Author's Note:**

> original post------->http://cheshire-ree.tumblr.com/post/138638745963/sourin-week-day-two-aiko-desho-when-we-were
> 
> No actually magic is used, yikes yikes. But if I ever do a follow up of this there will be.
> 
> Based a bit on the idea that Sousuke is the son of a witch in this extremely wonderful and absolutely cute SouMako fic: Witch’s Son by CyanCandy ------>http://archiveofourown.org/works/5118896
> 
> I loved it sooo much, I hope the writer doesn’t mind me borrowing it a bit. After writing so much for day 1 I’m kind of burned out, so day 2 is rather short. Haru makes a “cameo” as the bird Sousuke’s mother gifts him. Not pictured is the other bird that Sousuke’s mother takes in after she saves him from a badger that she names Makoto. Makoto is away with Sousuke’s mother for the day. I just thought it’d be a bit funny to do.
> 
> Excuse the bad title. Posted late on A03 b/c things are very hectic for me rn, but I'll try and keep on time from now on.


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